The Latest: Feb 2019

It’s no secret that the dream of home ownership is increasingly a daunting prospect. From overwhelming student loan debt, to less-than-stellar credit scores, to steadily-climbing home prices, there’s no shortage of factors keeping a lot of us from achieving that hallmark of adulthood. However, some markets are tougher to pull off this particular aspect of “adulting” in than others.

One of the cool parts about being an adult is buying the stuff your folks wouldn’t or couldn’t get you as a child. Before you allow those nostalgic desires to fade into sadness and resentment, here’s how you can make up for at least one of the major requests your parents either strategically ignored or flat-out denied: signing on the dotted line for this magnificent pinecone-shaped treehouse, which has been placed up for sale by its designers, O2 Treehouse.

This three-story house can easily be a party pad or family estate. 6504 Rodrigo Street, Unit A Located in Houston, Texas $999,900 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms You know what they say: Everything is bigger in Texas. And it certainly feels that way with this Camp Logan home. Built by On Point Custom Homes, a prominent Texas architecture firm, this contemporary property has a first-floor space that’s dedicated to living and dining.

Update: Grey Gardens has found a buyer, according to the Washington Post. Owner, journalist Sally Quinn, hasn’t disclosed who is purchasing the property or the selling price (it was reduced to $17,995,000 in April), but mentioned that “she’s ‘happy’ with the contract and the new owner ‘really understands the house’ and plans to preserve it.

Well, old sport, now you can live that West Egg fantasy life. This over the top mansion on Long Island was the inspiration for the titular character’s estate in the 2013 film adaptation of The Great Gatsby. And the price? You’ll need Gatsby’s fortune to match, because this place is listed for $85 million.

Before people threw shade and sent subtweets, they built spite houses. One of the more famous real estate clap backs is Boston’s Skinny House, and it is currently for sale. Spite houses are exactly what they sound like: real estate built to spite someone else by blocking a view, annoying a neighbor, or to get around a zoning law. There’s usually an interesting story attached, and who doesn’t like a home with its own legend?

It’s been almost 60 years since Paul and Helen Olfelt hired iconic American architect Frank Lloyd Wright to build their Minnesota house. Now the couple are in their 90s, and are selling the—totally untouched!—place for $1.295 million. The three bedroom, two bathroom home sits on 3.77 “extremely private acres at the end of a quiet cul de sac” in St. Louis Park, just seven miles from downtown Minneapolis.

They say everything is bigger in Texas, even—nay especially—the boots. Case in point: There’s a cowboy boot so large you can live in it. And it’s available for rent. Located in Huntsville, a city about an hour north of Houston, the footwear inspired house and the adjoining bungalow were designed and built by local artist Dan Phillips, who specializes in constructing homes with recycled and salvaged materials.

If you love mid-century design and also the work of master architect Frank Lloyd Wright, this Texas home is the design mashup you’ve been waiting for. Take a look inside for yourself. David Foster George, who lived to be 100, was a Texas-based architect who was a fan of the Craftsman style and studied under Wright at Taliesin West.

Looking to live that Usonian life? One such home in an Frank Lloyd Wright designed community in Pleasantville, New York is ready to make your dreams come true. Wright used the term Usonian to refer to his vision for the landscape of the US, including city planning and architecture.

Starchitect Zaha Hadid was a tour de force of contemporary architecture and design, creating everything from iconic buildings to vases and tableware—even a sneaker. Now, her Miami Beach condo is on the market, and some of her one of a kind furniture is up for grabs as well. The 2,299 square foot condo at the W Hotel South Beach is almost entirely windows, with stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean. The place comes with three bedrooms, four bathrooms, and as few interior walls as possible.

Wondering what the former President and First Lady have been up to after their much-memed Tropical vacation on Richard Branson’s private island? Well, the answer is house-hunting. Fortunately, for the Obamas, they didn’t have to hunt very far before finding their new dream home. Ok, so “new” might not be entirely the right word. See, the Obamas just purchased the DC-area home they’ve been renting since leaving the White House.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s 150th birthday is this week, and luckily we get to peek inside Tirranna, an astounding private home in Connecticut, that happens to be on the market for $7.2 million. Tirranna—which means “running water” in the language of Australia’s Aboriginal people—is a horseshoe shaped property overlooking the Noroton River in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Ever wonder how Oscar winning actor Natalie Portman relaxes? Based on her latest real estate acquisition, we’re guessing that staring at the ocean factors in heavily. The Jackie star recently purchased a vacation home in Montecito, a town on the California coast northwest of Los Angeles near Santa Barbara. Check out the property for yourself. The modern vacation home, designed by Santa Barbara architect Barton Meyers, set Portman back $6.5 million.

If you’re one of the millions of Americans who start their day with Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie on NBC’s morning show Today, we wouldn’t judge if you feel like you’re already friends. And now, Savannah’s Tribeca loft is on the market, and you can peek inside. The 2,691 square foot condo, which has three bedrooms plus an office and four full bathrooms, was purchased by Guthrie’s husband, political consultant Michael Feldman, in 2012 for $3.8 million.

Oprah Winfrey’s estimated net worth is $3 billion, but one of the properties in her real estate portfolio is surprisingly modest. The media mogul is currently selling a house in Chicago’s nearby Elmwood Park suburb—for under $400,000. The 2,250 square foot brick colonial has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and an attached garage. Originally built in 1941, Oprah purchased the property in 2001 for $298,000, but has never lived in it.

When it comes to real estate, Jared Leto is no Joker. The Suicide Squad star just sold his home in the Hollywood Hills for $2.05 million, $50,000 over the asking price. The 4,021 square foot four bedroom, three and a half bath home was built in 1955. Leto purchased the property in March 2006 for $1.65 million. The floor plan shows that there is a master bedroom and two connected guest bedrooms on the first floor, along with the kitchen, dining room, and living room with a fireplace.

A tiny cottage to escape to might be on your wish list, but this one is a bit out of the ordinary. The cedar shingled dwelling is actually on a rooftop in the East Village, and it can be yours—if you have the funds to buy the penthouse below for $3.5 million. Curbed NY was the first to report the story, and while rooftop cottages are a rare New York feature, this isn’t the first one we’ve seen.

Michael Graves’ first ever commission is on the market. The Modernist property in Fort Wayne, Indiana is listed for the (affordable for its pedigree) price of $264,888. Designed for his friends Jay and Lois Hanselmann, the Hanselmann House was completed in 1971, and not much has changed since then.

The legendary Frank Lloyd Wright designed some unique properties in his day, but we’ve never seen one quite like this. Needless to say, the starchitect proved he was a fun guy with this mushroom-esque structure, now for sale for $1.5 million. The Sol Friedman House is part of Wright’s Usonia community in Pleasantville, New York—just 50 minutes north of Manhattan.

Name: Santa and Mrs. Claus Location: North Pole Size: 2,500 square feet, with multiple 150-square=foot cottages on 25 acres Years lived in: 195 years, owned Move over, Martha. When it comes to decorating inspiration for the holidays, there’s only one influencer who truly makes their mark on every home, and his name is Santa Claus. Santa, a toy company entrepreneur and delivery man, works one day a year. The rest of the time, you’ll find him — along with his wife, Mrs.

Our latest peek into the fascinating real estate ventures of celebrities is the recent sale of model-entrepreneur couple Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber’s beachfront Malibu house. The new owner dropped $45 million on the pair’s former digs in a transaction that was finalized last month. Crawford and Gerber originally listed the 3.

We’ve all heard it. If you’re looking to buy, you should always go for the worst house in the best neighborhood. But have many of us ever stopped to question that conventional wisdom? I thought I was bucking convention when I bought one of the lowest priced houses in a neighborhood that many locals steer clear of (and to my eternal frustration that Uber drivers tell my Airbnb guests they should avoid) — but is it true?

Ask real estate agents and they’ll admit that they’re just as frustrated about some quirks in the home buying process as you are. Here, seven things that bother them the most: Usually it’s no one’s business but yours if you’re messy or tidy—but when your place is on the market, your cleanliness habits can affect how quickly your home sells: “It should go without saying, but I have to say it all the time: Tidy up!